Cops is a 1922 American two-reel silent comedy film about a young man (Buster Keaton) who accidentally gets on the bad side of the entire Los Angeles Police Department during a parade and is chased all over town. It was written and directed by Edward F. Cline and Keaton. This very Kafka-esque film was filmed during the rape-and-murder trial of Fatty Arbuckle, a circumstance that may have influenced the short's tone of hopeless ensnarement.[1][2]
| Cops | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Edward F. Cline Buster Keaton |
| Written by | Edward F. Cline Buster Keaton |
| Produced by | Joseph M. Schenck |
| Starring | Buster Keaton Virginia Fox Joe Roberts Edward F. Cline Steve Murphy |
| Cinematography | Elgin Lessley |
| Distributed by | First National Pictures Inc. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 18 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Languages | Silent film English (original intertitles) |
It was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in their National Film Registry in 1997.[3][4]
Plot
editEven though the central character's intentions are good, he cannot win, no matter how inventively he tries. He gets into various scraps with police officers throughout the film. Eventually, he unwittingly throws a bomb into a police parade and ends up being chased by a horde of cops.
At the end of the film, Keaton's character locks up the cops in the police station. However, the girl he is trying to woo disapproves of his behavior and gives him the cold shoulder. Therefore, he unlocks the police station and is immediately pulled in by the cops. The film ends with the title "The End" written on a tombstone with Keaton's pork pie hat propped on it.
Cast
edit- Buster Keaton as The Young Man
- Joe Roberts as Police Chief
- Virginia Fox as Mayor's Daughter
- Edward F. Cline as Hobo
- Steve Murphy as Conman selling furniture (uncredited)
Legacy
editCops is one of Keaton's most iconic and brilliantly constructed short films.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Neibaur, James L., and Terri Niemi (2013). Buster Keaton's silent shorts, 1920-1923. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 148. ISBN 081088741X.
- ^ Oldham, Gabriella (1996). Keaton's silent shorts: Beyond the laughter. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press. p. 203. ISBN 0585108064.
- ^ "New to the National Film Registry (December 1997) - Library of Congress Information Bulletin". www.loc.gov. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
- ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
External links
edit
- Cops essay by Randy Haberkamp at National Film Registry [1]
- Cops essay by Daniel Eagan in America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 ISBN 0826429777, pages 81–83 [2]
- The short film Cops is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.
- Cops at IMDb
- Cops at AllMovie
- Cops at the International Buster Keaton Society
- Article at InDigest Magazine about the film recently being scored by guitarist Steve Kimock